In 2023, semaglutide was the top-selling drug in the US. More commonly known as Ozempic, semaglutide was created to treat diabetes, but it has found itself being used as a weight loss medication, even by people who are not medically at risk. Ozempic was brought into the public consciousness following a series of high-profile celebrity weight loss journeys including those of James Corden, Tracy Morgan, and even Elon Musk. It has been criticized in popular media for fueling unrealistic body standards and eating disorders, but Ozempic appears to have a variety of other applications as well. 

Semaglutide functions by mimicking a hormone called glucagon-like-peptide-1 (GLP-1), which stimulates insulin production and inhibits glucagon production (a hormone that raises blood sugar). By reducing glucagon levels, semaglutide effectively reduces blood sugar levels, which makes it an effective treatment for type-II diabetes. Semaglutide also slows gastric emptying, allowing a person to stay full for longer and thus eat less. Although semaglutide in its various forms is mostly used to treat diabetes and obesity, recent studies have shown that it can reduce the risk of Alzheimer’s. In a controlled trial studying Ozempic, researchers found that patients taking Ozempic had a 40-70% decrease in first-time Alzheimer’s diagnosis in comparison to a control group. This is likely due to the fact that semaglutide affects a variety of factors that increase the chance of contracting Alzheimer’s, such as cardiovascular disease, obesity, and diabetes. Given that Alzheimer’s has no cure, any potential new treatment is a welcome addition to the relatively scant arsenal of tools that we have. 

Semaglutide has also been shown to aid those struggling with drug addiction by affecting the brain’s reward systems. In a retrospective study on over 80,000 patients, those administered semaglutide were found to have a 50-56% reduced risk of alcohol-related events compared to those who were on other anti-obesity medications. Scientists hypothesize that semaglutide affects the brain’s mesolimbic system, which is known to have GLP-1 receptors. The concentration of semaglutide in one injection of Ozempic usually far exceeds the amount of natural GLP-1 which is released by the body after digestion. Furthermore, semaglutide is also more resistant to degradation than GLP-1 which allows it to stay in the body for an unusually long period of time, penetrate the blood-brain barrier, and access the receptors in the mesolimbic system. The mesolimbic pathways in our brain are responsible for regulating our reward responses, and a disordered mesolimbic system can lead to substance abuse. By regulating GLP-1 receptors in the brain, semaglutide injections become a potential treatment for those struggling with severe substance abuse. 

Considering the current obesity crisis and the fact that 48.5 million Americans suffered from substance abuse disorders in 2023, semaglutide has widespread applications across a range of issues that currently affect our society. To focus on the potential applications of semaglutide, however, is to ignore some problematic aspects regarding its use. Both obesity and diabetes disproportionately impact communities of lower socioeconomic status, which are often communities of color. These are likely the communities that are neither able to access nutritionally balanced diets nor afford the high cost of medications such as Ozempic. As a cosmetic treatment, semaglutide is also highly damaging to people who struggle with body image issues. The proliferation of ozempic has encouraged more and more people to conform to unrealistic body standards set by the media that promote artificial displays of beauty and wellbeing. As more studies continue to come out on the potential benefits of semaglutide, it is important to keep these issues in mind to ensure that the drug is used for its better purposes.